Hot Dog Eating Contest Controversy Simmers

(CBS)  The annual Fourth of July Nathan's Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island had a heaping helping of controversy Sunday.

After Joey "Jaws" Chestnut took the "mustard belt" for the fourth year in a row, gulping down a whopping 54 dogs in 10 minutes, his biggest rival, six-time champ Takeru "The Tsunami" Kobayashi, stormed the stage, wrestled with cops, and was arrested on trespassing and other charges.

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He wasn't allowed to take part in the contest because he's in a contract dispute with the contest's organizer, Major League Eating. He says on his blog that he wants to compete in events sanctioned by other organizations. But he also told Japan's Kyodo News, " "I really want to compete in the (July Fourth) event."

Kobayashi's actions were "kind of unfortunate and maybe sad and certainly disruptive," the president of Major League eating, Richard Shea, told co-anchor Chris Wragge on "The Early Show" Monday.

Noting that it occurred just as the awards ceremony was taking place, Shea remarked, "We had a four-hour celebration. I hate to see that get lost. It's part of the Fourth of July celebration holiday out there. We had a blast. We had four hours of entertainment. ... Then something happened at the very end to kind of sully it. So, that was kind of sad."

Shea said the deal Major League Eating is offering "isn't all that terrible. It's just that we have a league, and our league is sponsored. For instance, you can't do a Nathan's hot dog contest one day and another brand the next. We like to sort of help the sport advance safely and maintain its integrity.

"So, just like the NFL, if you want to be in the Super Bowl, you have to be in the NFL. If you want to be in the Super Bowl of competitive eating, which is the Nathan's contest, you have to be a Major League eater."

"There aren't that many outside ventures," Shea added. "Major League Eating has had 85 events nationwide in the past year and almost $600,000 in prizes. I don't know where else you go."

Shea said he doesn't know what happened to Kobayashi now. "Literally, it was an NYPD (New York Police Department) issue. That is an area -- there's 40,000, 50,000 people there. … I run the league, and I was being asked for credentials. So, they took him away and they did the right thing, the NYPD. He's got to resolve his issue before I can really comment" on his case, or future with Major League Eating.

"To use the parlance of the sport," Shea concluded, "we have to let this sort of digest and we'll see where we are. ... We'll see how it unfolds."

[nopatriot]

May be not so many Americans don't know what really have happened to Japanese people in USA, some of them had unreasonable arresting by USA police officers and even had trouble with Americans' lies.
One Japanese man is coming out his story related to Takeru Kobayashi , I am not sure if it was real story or not.
But I would like to introduce here. He was a student in Hawaii from Japan, one day, a girl next door lost her golden fish and she suspected him( japanese ) ate the golden fish (Come on, Japanese don't eat golden fish, it's pet.) and Hawaiian police came to his door and put guns to him and he was arrested really aggressively.
He stayed in a jail for 14 days on the trial but the girl found the dead golden fish in her near the drain, it was her fault. But he was not released from a jail. ( Is that possible to be happened ? ) She dropped the charge but he was kept in a prison for 14 days. First three days , a police officer Margaret something , she gave him a smelly row fish for him, he could not eat. He was so hungry and the other inmate begged to give him same meals and he started to have same foods. He was so threatened by Hawaiian officers on this case, he was totally innocent. He was a student and he went back to japan without showing up the trial, because he was so scared by police in jail.
he was called " Fishjap" by police officers and his name on the cell was also "Fishjap.
he could not call japanese embassy , because it was denied by the police officers.
Finally he was released after 13nights and 14 days, because she found the dead fish in her drain.
recently he wanted to travel Hawaii and applied ESTA from japan, but it was denied. The reason denied was " Committed crime and escaped"

But is it something wrong? he was abused by police officers and neglected on missing golden fish , but he did not do anything wrong and he was innocent.
I guess he has no idea how to get right status for him too.

USA making mistakes. This is like movie stories, if it is true story.

Quote : http://read2ch.com/r/newsplus/1278308876/ - story 83

[wlhoppers]

The most important thing for Kobayashi is to defend his ability for gluttony? Wow, his parents must be proud...

[enough-already]

by rafterman1 July 5, 2010 10:42 AM EDT
Major League Eating? A "sport"? Are you freakin' kidding me?
Reply to this comment

by enough-already July 6, 2010 11:17 AM EDT
Think about it, rafterman...could YOU do what those people do? I know I couldn't. How is that so different from actual professional sports? I can't do what pro athletes do either. So, I can kind of understand where they're coming from.

[m0u5y]

Well at that point then everything someone else can't do should be considered a sport. Not only that, but I guess it isn't a sport when normal people like us play it? I don't get it, is it a sport when the pros do it or not? And if this should be considered a sport, then also competitive hopscotch and ironing should be considered one. I can do a lot of things better than other people and even some others can't do but should competitive Wii sports, speed drawing, musical improvisation, writing backwards and forwards at the same time, and competitive burping be considered a sport. The definition of a sport requires one to be a physical activity of some sort, and I doubt eating is one. Even if you have to work it off after eating so much.

[pixel_cutter]

So the lesson learned here is: Watch what you eat or you can be arrested. LOL

[kazoobean]

Where is the controversy? Jerk jumped on stage and wrestled with NYPD. Then got arrested.

[yerhumps]

In a world were thousands starve to death every day, "hotdog eating contests" are disgusting and depraved beyond belief. People who are entertained by these contests are similarly depraved, or just plain feebleminded. Only in America!

[jmoneyisback]

Wow. Dumbest comment yet. No country contributes more to 3rd world countries than America. It's also easy for you to sit here and condemn America without doing anything yourself to help, isn't it? Hypocrite. If you hate America's success so much, live somewhere else.

[nopatriot]

Some Japanese in Japanese news site, they have same ideas as commenter here.
" Don't waste foods too much."
Give to poor , if you are a good human.
How about eating contest for homeless or give hotdog for homeless or hungers?
I try to donate and donated money sometimes to church to feed children and hungers and homeless.
I think it is not enough , why has to have arrest to show " Anti - Japanese " policy while people try to make peace?
I think if the company accept foreigners , must be careful to deal with.
when the other asians are treated well, such a crucial treatment for only Japanese, it's other japanese opinions.
" Don't accept foreigner if you insult them." this is also some Japanese opinions.
Why USA media love to insult foreigners too much?
Childish and helpless thoughts and it is not ladies and gentlemen do.

this is the way evil spirits do.

Or junk , just junk. So junk.

Do not embarrass me with junk mails of junk news.

I say again, who cares one misunderstood as a celebrity who was a Japanese on hotdog eating deal,

if some start to fight on this, we ignore that.

Don't make it as a big deal any more.

Ignore the news, if you really dislike people.

I do.

I ignore people who I don't like.

But I don't embarrass them or insult them.

this is the manor and rule.

Preaching some bad manor medias in USA , it is wasting time.

THEY CREATE STORIES LIKE FUNGUS OF THE WET SEASONS, GIVE TO THEM SPRAY!!!

[srdthatsme]

This is the best reply to any news story that I have ever read!
I have no clue what it means, but it's best by far!
Thank you for making my day brighter!

[the comish]

what do you mean when you say it is obamas fault.you know it must be bushs fault.if you dont believe that ask obama.he will tell you anything bad is bushs fault.

[scallywagy]

Kobayashi upon leaving jail:

?I am very hungry. I wish there were hot dogs in jail.?

So next time you pick up a hot dog to eat, think about the madness that some professional hot dog eaters go through. Pity the league didn?t save at least one hot dog for Kobayashi?

http://scallywagandvagabond.com/2010/07/the-battle-of-the-hot-dogs/

[adv723]

What next..How about a contest...Major League Farting?....after all those eaten hot dogs somethings got to break...im sure its going to be methane laced wind.